Welcome to my blog! I am so excited that you are here to join me on my World Race journey. A little bit about me: I just graduated from high school in Birmingham, Alabama. In my free time, I love going shopping, listening to music, and watching my favorite shows. I love spending time with children and babysitting.
I have always wanted to take a gap year before college, but my younger self would be shocked and proud about what God has planned for me to do with Adventures in Missions. I believe that everyone has gifts that God has given them, and not everyone has yet figured out theirs, but I have. My gift is helping and feeling for other people, as well as giving. Serving others brings me immense joy and reminds me that I am reflecting God’s light. I hope to strengthen those gifts while I’m gone.
I am officially less than a week away from leaving for training camp. I’m excited to go, but I am also a little nervous. This will be the first time in my Life where I am truly putting my next steps in God’s hands. I don’t know how to feel, but I’m ready for this challenge ahead.
My parents and I visited REI for the first time to speak with someone about the gear I would need. We first started with the day pack, which I will use to store all my clothing, tent, sleeping bag, and other essentials. I put on the backpack for the first time, and it weighed me down. I was a little shocked and started to realize that this is what I will be carrying on my back for nine months. We then went to look at tents, and I began to realize that I would need to learn how to set one up. That sounded very daunting for me, especially since I will have to do it by myself. These challenges will help me learn how to trust and believe in myself. Finally, we got to the sleeping bags, and they were huge! When I was little, I used to have tiny sleeping bags to take to sleepovers and summer camp, but this was very different. Though anyone close to me knows that I can sleep anywhere: it could be sitting up, standing, on the floor, in the car, airplane, or boat, literally wherever I decide. That will be a tool I can use when I travel to different places. We left REI that day, and I started to grasp how real this is getting for me.
I’m eager to take a break for a while, so I can explore more of myself and deepen my relationship with God, but I’ll miss many things here. I have formed such close friendships with the youth at my church, and leaving for nine months will be incredibly hard for me. Anytime I think about preparing to leave for the Race, my mind goes to saying goodbye to my family, friends, and mentors. I never really had a mentor before, and so when people talked about them, I was always like, ‘What does that even mean?’ My mentors are the youth director and assistant youth director of my church. I’ve spent all of high school with them in church, at youth group, events, retreats, and conferences. I’ve taken time outside church to get coffee with them and deepen our relationship. I always confided in them when I was struggling, and rejoiced with them through the good times. They have been there for me through thick and thin, so not being able to see them for nine months is heartbreaking for me. Deep down, though, I know that God has given me this challenge so he can make me stronger and love even more. I hate saying goodbye, but I know it’s not forever, and I will come back with so many fun stories to share after my trip.
I will try to post a blog every week while I am away, and I look forward to keeping you all updated throughout my gap year. I am eager to begin this adventure, and I’m delighted to share with you the ways God is transforming me along the way.
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